Pilates is a physical exercise to train the flexibility and strength of the body's core muscles. This sport is safe to do from a young age to an elderly age. For the elderly, this sport can not only strengthen the body's muscles and improve the mood, but also reduce the risk of injury that is prone to the elderly.
Benefits Of Pilates For Elderly Groups
Exercise is necessary for all ages, ranging from children, adults, to the elderly. Reported from NHS, the elderly are also advised to carry out physical activity every day to reduce the risk of having a heart attack and stroke.
Sports guidelines for the elderly over 65 years of age in general include:
- Doing physical exercise every day even though it's just light activity.
- Balance exercise and strength at least 2 times per week.
- Moderate-intensity exercise is at least 150 minutes per week or 75 minutes of strenuous exercise per week, or a combination of both.
- Reduced sitting times, lying down, or inactive in a day.
One of the recommended sports for the elderly is pilates. Pilates are sports low impact which focuses on muscle exercise, strengthens the body's core, and trains movement flexibility.
Some of the benefits of pilates for the elderly include:
Increase bone density
With age, bone density will decrease. Keroposing bones are at risk of causing the elderly to be injured. Regular weight training can help slow bone damage to the elderly. A study revealed that pilates can maintain bone mineral density after menopause on women.
The recommended type of exercise is pilates with reformer or tower (cadillac) which uses spring resistance as a load. This load-retaining exercise is considered better to increase bone density than mattress pilates.
Also read: Pilates, Is It Effective To Lose Weight?
Maintaining posture
Decreasing bone density can cause the body to bend. Postures of the body bend causing pressure on joints and other organs as they age. A tense and unbalanced body muscle can also cause pain. Meanwhile, pilates focus on alignment and balance of the body through a movement that strengthens joints so that posture is maintained.
Preventing injuries
With age, the elderly are prone to bone loss that causes injury. In the elderly, injuries can cause other problems such as fractures, joint dislocation, disability, to death.
Pilates exercises prepare your body to carry out daily activities, train joint stability, and strengthen bones, thereby reducing the risk of injury.
Also read: Not Only Fixing Body Postures, These Are The Benefits Of Pilates For Your Body
Reducing back pain
Back pain is one of the health problems that affects the quality of life of the elderly. The pilates movement targets the body's core so that muscles and spine can support and protect the back better. A study revealed that back pain eased after pilates exercises for 3 months.
Improve mood
Exercise in general can increase the release of happy hormones so that your mood feels better after exercising. A study in 2022 states that pilates in addition to making the mood better can also provide psychosocial benefits for the elderly group if done in groups.
Pilates is a sport that is safe for various age groups, including the elderly. Elderly who will carry out the pilates need to adjust the types of exercises to their overall health condition. Some types of pilates movements that are safe for the elderly, including movements that do not use too much body rotation. crunches.
If you have questions about the health of the elderly, you should consult a doctor. You can also take advantage of the consultation feature in the application Ai Care which can be downloaded via App Store or Play Store.
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